1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. (“JP”) 2001-174690 discloses an image pickup apparatus that enables a user to freely correct an adjustment value used to calibrate a defocus amount of an image pickup lens which was set at the factory shipping time. JP 2005-227639 discloses an image pickup apparatus having an autofocus (“AF”) micro adjustment that is a fine adjustment function in the AF for each lens. JP 2009-003122 discloses an image pickup apparatus that provides focus detecting pixels to an image pickup device and realizes a phase difference detection function.
As described above, there is a function that enables a photographer to manually set a correction value of a defocus amount. In using this function, the photographer determines the correction value by his own sense after he confirms a taken image (reproduced image). Thus, the manipulation is arduous because the setting of the correction value and the confirmation of the reproduced image are repeatedly performed. In addition, in a specific shooting scene, a position that is actually to be focused in a screen may be different from a photographer's focus position. For example, although the photographer pursues a focus on an eye of a racing driver (which is the position actually to be focused in the screen), the helmet of the racing driver is focused (which is the photographer's focus position). In this case, it is convenient that the camera provides autofocus onto the eye of the racing driver when the photographer operates the camera so that the helmet of the racing driver can be focused, only if the photographer sets a defocus amount in advance. However, when the helmet of a racing driver is focused upon but the racing driver's face and eyes are defocused, the prior art proposes no means to provide information of a defocus amount of an object for focus-detection.